An online survey of the public’s dramatic preferences by English Touring
Theatre will tell us much about the state of theatre today.

Do people know what’s good for them? In a fascinating exercise in devolved decision-making, English Touring Theatre (ETT) – under the directorship of Rachel Tackley – has posed a big question to the nation: what’s your favourite play?

The idea is to get a region-by-region snapshot, using an online survey, of what’s hot (and what’s not) and for the company to do its utmost, as it celebrates its 21st anniversary next year, to stage the best-loved works in some shape or form. Nine of the most popular plays will join the company’s regular touring schedule of 12 – making a neat 21 in total. The only stipulation is that the plays must be original, and written in English – which allows for a vast pool of eligible works, with everyone from Shakespeare, Sheridan, Shaw and Stoppard in the frame, to take an obvious letter of the alphabet for starters.

As an exercise in getting theatre-goers of every background and experience to rack their brains, and as a means of putting ETT on the map, it’s a shrewd move. Almost as soon as the curtain went up on the venture, it was the subject of much chatter, with amusing tweets from playwrights such as Mark Ravenhill requesting support from followers, and voting relayed in real-time over at the dedicated site, myfavouriteplay.com. It’s not exactly hold-the-front-page news to reveal that King Lear, Hamlet and Pygmalion were faring well initially but with some bold choices creeping in – Howard Barker’s The Castle, for instance – it’s no dead certainty what the final crop of favourites will be.

Of course, it’s hardly difficult to spot potential pitfalls. Producers worth their salt will have snapped up the rights to anything with half a hope of a profitable showing, and a living playwright may equally take a view that his or her work is best left on the shelf for the time being, rather than forming part of some touring jamboree. If you can rally enough support via social media, I suppose you could manipulate the results or sabotage them – some might find it a laugh to champion a dud. It will be interesting, too, to see whether in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, allegiances fall along nationalistic lines.

In a more tangible sense, the pledge to bring the most popular submissions to the stage creates an obvious temptation for individual tactical-voting. Your life-saving desert-island play might well be Hamlet, but if you’ve seen it loads of times, and would prefer to see something that has never come your way before, here is your chance. Theatre aficionados might also consider it beneath them to get involved, while those who feel short-changed at the variety they’re offered locally might well inquire: how can you know what play you like best if you’re fed a diet of arts centre pap? Furthermore there’s a gulf between most significant and “best-loved” – rather more people have seen The Mouse Trap than Blue/Orange, but I’d argue that Joe Penhall’s play is one of the most important we’ve seen this century. Who’s to say, though, that Agatha Christie won’t rise up to startle us all?

In short, the whole thing might backfire amid gripes about falsely raised hopes and statistical blips. Still, the project arrives at a notable pivotal moment in our theatrical history. As the National Theatre hits 50 next month, the question as to how far British theatre really reaches the nation is worth debating – outside of London I’d suggest it’s still a postcode lottery as to whether you’re starved or glutted. And though we pride ourselves on leading the world in new writing, how many major plays since Look Back in Anger have truly registered with the public?

In a way, we’re coming full circle. Fifty years ago our theatre wasn’t so diverse, but arguably it was more responsive to different needs up and down the land. The repertory and touring systems required a constant commercial cunning and a fine-tuned sensitivity to local tastes. The development of the post-war subsidised sector stimulated the growth of new writing but also a sense that those who ran the show knew best – audiences were given what it was deemed they needed or would like. This new initiative sits well with the age of people power – it echoes the armchair-expert populism of The X Factor, and the you-lead, we-follow ethos of the Coalition. Even if our theatre culture is still shaped by an elite of individual talents, those in charge need to be seen to do more to open up the process to democratic forces. If, come December, we learn that, region by region, the nation has stitched together something for everyone without blandness taking hold, we can all pat ourselves on the back. If the results are more dismaying, there’s work to be done.

What’s my favourite play, I hear someone ask? Agonised pause. Lord what slaves these critics be to their earliest transformative encounters and their current schedules. I’d opt for A Midsummer Night’s Dream – yes, opening tonight in the West End, but a masterpiece so inspired I could sit through it for years on end. Boring choice? Well go on then, over to you. It’s a free-for-all.